American universities 'open the door' to recruiting Vietnamese people, many schools open their own scholarships, and provide additional support

ĐH Mỹ 'rộng cửa' tuyển người Việt, nhiều trường mở học bổng riêng, thêm hỗ trợ - Ảnh 1. — Mr. Brent Wilkinson (red shirt), Director of International Admissions and Immigration at Calvin University, advises Vietnamese people on opportunities to study in the US.

The US Education Office (US Consulate General in Ho Chi Minh City) on September 26 organized the US education fair for the fall of 2025, attracting 60 US colleges and universities to attend. Many schools shared with Thanh Nien that in the context of some adjustments to student visa regulations, the school still maintains the same admission policy as last year, mainly considering only high school transcripts (GPA) and English certificates, while increasing investment to attract more Vietnamese students.

American universities increase scholarships

For example, Linn-Benton Community College in Albany (Orregon) now also guides students applying for study visas, such as how to prepare study plans and financial documents, as well as how to answer interviews with consular officers. In addition, the school also opens a scholarship program specifically for Vietnamese international students, automatically awarded to those with Vietnamese nationality, and allows students to accumulate other scholarships if they achieve a GPA of 3.0 or higher.

"In general, you can reduce 40-50% of tuition fees through scholarships. This is a huge amount compared to the tuition fee of 16,090 USD (424 million VND) for one academic year," said Ms. Fraya Saquina, the school's international student advisor. Ms. Saquina added that this is the second year the school has started recruiting Vietnamese students to study and the first year the school has sent representatives to Vietnam to directly advise parents and students.

"The number of Vietnamese international students is currently the second largest at the school and if you have prepared all the documents, we will speed up the processing and issue I-20 forms and admission letters to you in just about a week," Ms. Saquina informed.

Launching a scholarship specifically for Vietnamese international students is also a move that the University of Bridgeport in Bridgeport (Connecticut) has applied, according to Mr. Kenneth DiSaia, Director of International Admissions of the school. The scholarship is automatically applied to all students with Vietnamese nationality and is currently worth 20,000 USD/year (528 million VND), helping to reduce tuition to 12,000 USD/year (316 million VND).

Sharing about the decision to open the new scholarship mentioned above, Mr. DiSaia said that he really appreciated Vietnamese international students because they had good academic performance and were easy to integrate. However, the problem arose when the tuition fee at the time of initial access was not suitable for the Vietnamese market. "At that time, we discussed with the leadership to build an exclusive scholarship program for Vietnam, and at the same time recruited two more full-time staff in Vietnam to support parents and students," he said.

To be admitted, students need a GPA of 3.0 or higher, but the school can be lenient with Vietnamese students who achieve a score that is only "slightly lower," he added.

ĐH Mỹ 'rộng cửa' tuyển người Việt, nhiều trường mở học bổng riêng, thêm hỗ trợ - Ảnh 2. — Mr. Kenneth DiSaia, Director of International Admissions at the University of Bridgeport, said the school is actively recruiting Vietnamese students.

Bowling Green State University in Bowling Green, Ohio, is also automatically reviewing and awarding scholarships of $4,000/year (VND 105 million) to international students in general, as long as the GPA is at least 3.0. The school also allows the accumulation of another scholarship worth up to $8,000/year (VND 211 million) for students with a GPA of 3.7-4.0 and an SAT score of 1,380 or higher, or an ACT score of 31 or higher.

Support for students facing visa difficulties

One notable point in recent times is that many students have had delays in applying for student visas, according to Brent Wilkinson, Director of International Admissions and Immigration at Calvin University in Grand Rapids, Michigan. In this case, the school will be flexible in allowing students to defer admission to the next admission period and will continue to support them in this process. At the same time, the school also opened an immigration consulting office on campus to provide additional support to students.

"The school's admission process remains the same, requiring transcripts, English certificates and financial information. Collecting financial information helps international students start the visa application process earlier and for us to consider granting additional financial aid. In addition, you must submit an additional SAT or ACT if you want to apply for a scholarship. In particular, to receive a scholarship of 20,000 USD (528 million VND), you need to achieve an SAT score of 1.320 or higher with a GPA of 4.0," he informed.

Mr. Wilkinson added that the competitive GPA for admission is 3.8, but the school still makes room for students with lower scores by requiring them to write additional essays and submit letters of recommendation from their current teachers.

Also related to support for deferring admission, Ms. Le To, Director of the sponsored student program at North Carolina State University in Raleigh (North Carolina), informed that the school allows undergraduate students to defer up to 2 semesters and master's and doctoral students to defer up to 3 semesters, or one and a half years, if "the profile is good and the student is a real talent". And if high school students register for subjects in a group that is "different" from their major, the school still allows them to enroll normally.

Meanwhile, Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh (Pennsylvania) currently allows its students to receive 15-minute legal advice from lawyers completely free of charge. The unit also has an International Student Office that guides foreigners in detail about the visa situation, new related policies..., according to Mr. David B. Danenberg, representative from the Heinz College of Information Systems and Public Policy at Carnegie Mellon University.

ĐH Mỹ 'rộng cửa' tuyển người Việt, nhiều trường mở học bổng riêng, thêm hỗ trợ - Ảnh 3. — Ms. Melissa A. Brown, US Consul General in Ho Chi Minh City, commented that when choosing to study in the US, Vietnamese people will receive "more than a degree".

The US still maintains Fulbright scholarships.

Speaking at the event, Ms. Melissa A. Brown, US Consul General in Ho Chi Minh City, commented that US universities "greatly appreciate the academic and cultural contributions of Vietnamese students" who have enriched school life in this country. Last year alone, more than 36,000 Vietnamese came to the US to study, according to Ms. Brown, and potential international students can contact EducationUSA for free advice on studying in the US.

EducationUSA also recommends that students and parents should not use services from study abroad companies that claim to be able to support applying for US student visas.

The US also affirmed its continued commitment to the Fulbright program. This is an educational exchange program that creates opportunities for Americans to study, teach or conduct research abroad, while supporting Vietnamese scholars and professionals to pursue these activities in the US. In 2025 alone, the Fulbright program will welcome 47 Vietnamese to the US to study and conduct research, and 48 American scholars and students to Vietnam.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/dh-my-rong-cua-tuyen-nguoi-viet-nhieu-truong-mo-hoc-bong-rieng-them-ho-tro-185250926184843737.htm